Gale, William S.

Born: 1822-02-15 Adams, New York

Died: 1900-09-01 Galesburg, Illinois

Flourished: Galesburg, Illinois

William S. Gale was a lawyer, farmer, newspaper editor, postmaster, city government official, and prominent citizen of Galesburg, Illinois. Gale received his education in his native New York until the age of fourteen, when he moved with his family to Galesburg, where he completed his education. Gale read law and earned admission to the Illinois bar in 1845. In October 1845, he married Caroline Ferris, with whom he had eight children. Gale practiced law for a few years before turning his attention to agricultural pursuits and the development of Knox County and Galesburg. He became a director and promoter of the Chicago, Burlington, and Quincy Railroad, and from 1850 to 1853, he edited the News Letter, a paper that promoted railroad construction in Galesburg and Knox County. Gale also held several local and county offices. From July 1849 to June 1853, he served as postmaster of Galesburg. From 1853 through the end of the Civil War, he was on the board of supervisors for Knox County. As a supervisor, he advocated for Galesburg to become the county seat and, once Galesburg became the seat of government, labored to build county buildings in the city. In 1860, Gale was farming and owned real property valued at $25,000 and had a personal estate of $5,000. Gale represented Knox County at the Illinois state constitutional convention of 1862. He was also a trustee of Knox College. Gale was an adherent of the Whig Party and, after that party’s demise, later embraced the Republican Party.

Newton Bateman and Paul Selby, eds., Historical Encyclopedia of Illinois and Knox County, ed. by W. Selden Gale and Geo. Candee Gale (Chicago: Munsell, 1899), 725-26; Portrait and Biographical Album of Knox County, Illinois (Chicago: Biographical, 1886), 882-84; Illinois Statewide Marriage Index, Knox County, 23 October 1845, Illinois State Archives, Springfield, IL; Franklin William Scott, Newspapers and Periodicals of Illinois, 1814-1879, vol. 6 of Collections of the Illinois State Historical Library (Springfield: Illinois State Historical Library, 1910), 184; Record of Appointment of Postmasters, 1832-1971, NARA Microfilm Publication, M841, 145 rolls, Records of the Post Office Department, RG 28, 1845-1855, 18:100, National Archives Building, Washington, DC; U.S. Census Office, Eighth Census of the United States (1860), Galesburg, Knox County, IL, 326; Gravestone, Hope Cemetery, Galesburg, IL.